The real muscle in the realm of amateur bodybuilding and fitness in the
United States is the National Physique Committee, and its influence is growing.
For good reason. The sport's top amateur athletes realize the NPC is their route
to the world's strongest bodybuilding organization - the International Federation
of Bodybuilders (IFBB), and to professional success.

For amateur bodybuilding in the USA, the NPC is the big kahuna. If you want to make it as a pro and take
advantage of all the publicity and money making opportunities, you must come up
through the NPC.

Unless, of course, you're part of the other 10%, like Mr. Olympia Dorian Yates
or Nassar El Sonbaty. "I'm telling you, this guy from England named Dorian
and that European Nasser El Sonbaty are messing things up." say NPC President
Jim Manion with a big laugh, referring to the nine of 10 successful bodybuilders
who come from the NPC. "Just think what our records would be if they had lived here
in the United States when they were amateurs."

A Passion for Bodybuilding

Many of us wonder what the future holds for the sport, but no one ponders it more
passionately than Manion. For the 42 year old Pennsylvania native, bodybuilding to the sport began
more than 25 years ago.

We've all heard stories of those rare people who've dedicated their lives to a cause greater than themselves
just for the sake of making things better for others. Manion had varied interests - he owned a
gym, worked for a natural gas company and was a competitive bodybuilder who won
15 titles, including second place to Robby Robinson, but his true calling soon
became making the sport better for amateur competitors.

He was already championing the sport when a changing of the guard occurred in
the early '80s. "We formed the NPC back in 1982 after government legislation
caused many sporting events - like track and field, and physique competitions -
to break away from some of the other federations," say Manion. "We saw the void that was
left and believed that if a new organization was formed, one strictly devoted
to amateur physique competitions, then everyone would benefit.:

Build a Federation and They will Come!

Manion and the other founders of the NPC were right on target. The organization
stated out with approximately 6,000 members and sanctioned only 100 - 200
competitions a year. Today, it has more than 20,000 members and 800 - 1000
competitions held annually. Manion explains the success.

"The NPC has always had the support and recognition of the IFBB, which oversees
international competition and the professional side of the sport, and this has been
crucial to our success. The IFBB recognizes only one amateur physique federation
per country, and in the United States, the NPC is the amateur arm of the IFBB.
All bodybuilders - must win a qualifying NPC show before they can become IFBB
professionals."

Manion doesn't brag about the fact that the IFBB sees the NPC has the strongest
amateur physique organization in the world. That's no small feat considering that
more than 160 nations belong to the IFBB. Although he doesn't blow his own horn,
Manion is quick to give his people credit for the NPC honor.

People Matter

"Ours is a grass roots organization run by people who truly love the sport," says Manion.
"They want to see the sport grow and create more opportunities for those men and women who want
to make a good living from what they love to do, which, of course, is a bodybuilding
and fitness."

"Twenty five years ago, very few of us were able to make a living from the sport. Thanks
to Joe and Ben Weider, that's all changed. Today, we have chairmen all over the United
States and have worked very hard to bring opportunities to athletes and a high
level of organization to every contest. In essence, we make the promotion of
bodybuilding an easy thing to do."

"I'll give you an example. Let's say you want to promote an NPC bodybuilding show.
All you would have to do is pay the sanction fee, secure the venue, take care
of the trophies, publicity and ticket sales. The NPC comes in and does the mechanics of the show, from
bringing in the judges and registering and weighing the contestants to filing
the score sheets."

"We also furnish the promoter of the event with a $2 million liability insurance policy, pay
for all rights and clearances to music licensing organizations, and provide
insurance for the athletes competing in the contest. This even includes insuring
each athlete to and from the competition. The NPC takes away the worries about
putting on a successful bodybuilding event. Our goal is to see bodybuilding grow
at the gross roots level, and this is one way we do it."

The Sport's Best Got their Start Right Here

Like a doting father, Manion is especially proud of his NPC family. "Our first
Nationals champion was Lee Haney," he says. "Then you have guys like Kevin
Levrone, Shawn Ray, Flex Wheeler, Mike Quinn, Gary Strydom, Mike Christian,
Bob Paris, Chris Cormier, Paul DeMayo and so many others. Women like Lenda
Murray, Cory Everson, Laura Creavalle and Kim Chezevsky, to name a few, all
came from the NPC."

The Game Plan to go Pro

The one question up and coming amateur bodybuilders frequently ask is, what's
the best strategy to go from novice to pro?

"I always tell athletes to first enter a novice show or city contest," says
Manion. "Some people feel that they can jump right into a state show or a
national qualifier. Lee Haney is a perfect example. Lee entered and won the
Jr. Nationals and the Nationals in the same year. Now that is rare, yet it can
happen. However, for most, the progression would be to enter a city contest, state
contest, regional contest / national qualifier, Junior USA show, the USA show,
the Jr. Nationals, then the Nationals."

For the athlete who has everything but patience, the time it takes to go from
first show to becoming a pro is of major concern. "It's all so individual.
Some people have great genetics and can do it quicker, but for most, it's
about a three year process to get to the level of top national competitor."

The Place for Fitness

Hardcore bodybuilding isn't the NPC's only interest. The organization is
directly involved in the popular new women's fitness events. The match is
a natural one, with the NPC working to elevate this exciting competition
to never before achieved levels by creating more fitness shows - local,
state, regional and national events - than all other fitness organizations
combined.

The same protocol that male and female NPC bodybuilders must follow, namely
winning qualifying shows before moving to the next level and eventually
earning eligibility for IFBB events, will apply for all women interested in
competing in NPC amateur fitness events. Talk about a step in the right direction.

It's the Right Thing to Do

"In the past three years'" say Manion, "the NPC has produced steroid tested shows, and this year,
we'll promote nearly 150 of them. The winners of these shows are eligible to
compete in the Team Universe Championships in August. From this show, teams
are chosen to compete internationally in the men's and women's IFBB World
Amateur Championships, which of course, is also steroid tested."

"All of this has allowed us to run more state, regional and national qualifiers
and has given the athletes a terrific goal to shoot for - winning the prestigious
IFBB World Amateur Championships." You might be curious as to how our amateur athletes
from the United States fare against the world. "We've dominated the field over the last
four years," Manion says with a smile.

A Man with Belief can Change the World

Two subjects very sensitive to Jim Manion are the health of his athletes and
the future of the sport he so dearly loves. "We all want drugs to be eliminated from sport, and that means all
sports," he says with a hopeful sigh. "Yet we have to be honest and understand
that it's quite a daunting task to think that we can control anything and
everything an athlete puts inside his body. That's impossible.

"What we can do, and what we are planning to implement, is widespread diuretic
testing. From there, other forms of more advanced testing will be implemented.
For athletes in all sports, the need to win and the lack of self control can
wreck havoc in their lives. In a sense, because some of them won't protect themselves, we
have to be protectors of their health and protectors of the sports we love."

Loving What You Do

Take away the protective father's robe, the well tailored suits that have
traveled the world and the gym clothes that have soaked up countless hours of
in your face workouts and what is left? A man who loves what he does.

"I've met so many great people from all over the world. I'm a people person
and I always get great enjoyment by being able to give something back to the
sport I love. I always try to make time for anyone who wants to talk to me."

"The sport and the organization are nothing without the people who are in it, and I never want to
forget that. I owe a great deal of gratitude to these people, especially my son,
J.M., and my wife, Debbie, who helps me so much so I can travel and do all the things
I need to do to help our organization grow."

"One of the best feelings I get is when I receive letters from people. Just the
other day. I heard from some contestants who entered the NPC Wheelchair National
Championships. They told me how much it meant that someone really cared about them,
and I must say that really touched my heart."

"As president of the NPC, I do a lot of traveling and my wife smiles every time I tell
her I'm exhausted from all the traveling. She tells me that no matter where we
go or how tired I am, since I walk into that bodybuilding venue and see the
athletes and the people, my face lights up and the adrenalin takes over. I
guess that says it all."

How to Join the NPC?

The NPC is the world's number 1 amateur bodybuilding organization, and joining
is as simple as a quick application and $50 annual dues. Includes in your
membership is:

Six issues of NPC News magazine that features the sport's up and
coming new bodybuilding and fitness stars, along with contest results and
contest information on future NPC events.

Liability insurance (if you're a registered contestant) covering you
going to, from and at any NPC bodybuilding and fitness event.